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 Regional Overview
Visiting Australia? Discover our main wine states and regions
Australian wine regions
Australia is a large country - Margaret River is further from the Hunter Valley than Jerez in Spain is from Tokaji in Hungary - so, despite the distinctive national approach to wine, Australian wines are not all the same. The wines of Margaret River and of the Hunter Valley differ as much as sherry and tokay do. The three most important wine-producing states are South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales. As well as bulk production, they each have specific premium wine regions.
Read more about the wine regions of Australia here.
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REGIONAL SPOTLIGHT ARCHIVE |
Home : Regions : Australia : Victoria : Central Victorian High Country |
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| All articles on the Winepros Archive website are pre 2006 and are historical information only. |
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Central Victorian High Country
Region Summary
Location and Elevation
Central Victoria Zone
36°46'S, 145°33'E
300-500 m
Subregions
None at present, but may well emerge by (say) 2005.
Climate
The climate is strongly influenced by altitude, but the picking dates - and the wine styles - leave little doubt that this is a very cool region overall. Rainfall varies from 700 mm to 1000 mm on the northwest border to over 1400 mm in the far southeast and temperature (and heat summation) likewise varies considerably. The much photographed Delatite vineyard, with a full summer canopy of leaves and snow-clad mountains in the background illustrates the point, and most of the vineyards experience winter snows. As in all high country, site selection is of paramount importance. North and northeast facing slopes offer the best chance of fully ripening the grapes, while care must also be taken to ensure the slope does not end in a gully or valley which will trap cold air and increase the likelihood of frost.
Statistics
Heat degree days: 1460
Sunshine hours per day: 9.2
Annual rainfall: 700-1400 mm
Growing season rainfall: 350-500 mm
Mean January temperature: 20.7°C
Harvest: Early April-late May
Soil
The soils are varied, although the region as a whole is geologically described as the physiographic region of the East Victorian Uplands of dissected high plateaux established on various resistant rocks. These give rise to soils which range from granitic and granodiorite to sandstone, siltstone, claystone, limestone and dolomite.
Principal Grape Varieties
Chardonnay: 64 ha
Riesling: 15 ha
Sauvignon blanc: 11 ha
Semillon: 6 ha
Other: 8 ha
Total white: 104 ha
Shiraz: 59 ha
Cabernet sauvignon: 30 ha
Pinot noir: 21 ha
Merlot: 13 ha
Other: 5 ha
Total red: 128 ha
by James Halliday
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